Many bomb arming solenoids are found in the prior art and one of the more popular at the present time is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,200,707 issued 17 Aug. 1965 to W. F. West. The device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,200,707 is designed to hold an arming wire in a slot by means of a plunger co-acting with one wall of the slot. Should something cause the plunger to bind, the arming wire may not be released even though the solenoid is in "Unlocked" condition. According to the present invention the arming wire is held between two jaws so that movement of either jaw will allow removal of the arming wire. Some prior art devices are known which suggest the use of two jaws. One example of the two jaw construction is found in U.S. Pat. No. 2,992,594 issued 18 July 1961 to L. L. Anderson et al. The Anderson device, however, was rather complex and the point of contact of the jaws was placed on the opposite side of the pivot points from the locking means and the means biasing the jaws to a closed position.
According to the present invention, a two jaw release mechanism is provided which is simple and easy to manufacture, is lighweight and compact in structure and which achieves a desired closing force by means of simple wire springs, the force of which can be individually adjusted.